Patrick Dempsey will be racing in this weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans while he and his team will be filmed for a miniseries. / John Raoux, AP

by Nate Ryan, USA TODAY Sports

by Nate Ryan, USA TODAY Sports

The comparison is unmistakable - a cinematic star surrounded by cameras at one of the world's most famous races - but Patrick Dempsey would prefer to avoid it.

The Grey's Anatomy star will be racing in this weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he and his team will be filmed as part of Patrick Dempsey: Racing Le Mans. The four-part miniseries will premiere Aug. 28 on the Velocity network and focus on Dempsey's second attempt at racing the sports-car crown jewel, as well as his lineage among actor-drivers such as James Garner, Paul Newman and Steve McQueen.

It was McQueen who starred in the 1971 film Le Mans and dabbled in motor sports - though not quite to the extent of Dempsey, who has raced in the Grand-Am and the American Le Mans series for nearly a decade.

"Steve McQueen is such an iconic figure; it sometimes is a bit of a shadow," Dempsey said. "There's no way you can live up to that kind of expectation. It's such an honor to be mentioned with him, but I can't really think about that so much. A lot of our documentary is about McQueen and Newman and their passions for racing, and I think that's what we share, a real love for racing, a real love for this event, and I really want to do well. ... I'm fortunate enough to be able to do it."

Dempsey finished ninth in the 2009 24 Hours of Le Mans, sharing a GT2 AF Corse Ferrari F430 with co-driver and motor sports business partner Joe Foster. They return this year with American ace Patrick Long, a Porsche factory driver who has scored class victories at Le Mans, the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring.

The only all-American trio at Le Mans this year will pilot the No. 77 Dempsey Del Piero-Proton Porsche 911 GT3 RSR in the GTE Am class - the car will start seventh after Thursday's qualifying - and Long has been impressed by his first-time teammates, particularly Dempsey.

"He definitely is underrated," said Long, a five-time ALMS champion. "Working alongside him has certainly been a different experience. He's a very intense competitor, very focused, but what I underestimated is his fitness. We went testing in Misano (Italy), and the team was worn out. We're out of tires, we're out of fuel, and I'm like, 'This guy still wants to drive and he's here to put the numbers up and not just show up and look the part.'

"It's been a tremendous eye-opener for me, and it's made my job easier. He's very analytical."

But he also has a charisma and magnetism that can attract sponsors and plenty of media. Foster, who has worked with Dempsey for seven years, said any potential distractions were worth the trade-off.

"It's a good problem to have," he said. "That sort of hurricane that tends to follow us around the paddock of media and fans, and we are very lucky to have that, because it helps provide value for the people that pay for this.

"So it's all good, and it wasn't hard to get used to at all."

Of course, it isn't always easy for Dempsey to walk anywhere without drawing a crowd.

"You've really got to schedule yourself down to the second and plan for the amount of time it might take to walk 100 yards, because it's something that takes time. And Patrick is very good about making sure that all the fans get their due and that the sponsors get their due, as well," Foster said.

This weekend, it'll help that Dempsey has experience navigating the famous Circuit de La Sarthe and its surroundings.

"It really helps you to understand what the week is about, from the autograph session to the parade to the first practice to qualifying," Dempsey said. "You really have to pace yourself and be strong mentally."

His inaugural visit to Le Mans also was daunting, because Wilson and Dempsey each had to drive more than 10 hours to carry the load for a sick teammate.

"It was sort of like the old school version when there were just two drivers," Dempsey said. "So there was something about that moment and that challenge that we wanted to come back and see if we could go to the next step. To be on the podium would be a dream come true."